[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 37, Number 27 (Monday, July 9, 2001)]
[Pages 1012-1013]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the Nomination of Robert S. Mueller to be Director of the 
Federal Bureau of Investigation

July 5, 2001

    The President. Thank you all for coming. General, thank you for 
being here. It is my honor to nominate Robert S. Mueller, of California, 
to become the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I want to 
welcome his wife, Anne, here, and I want to welcome you all to the Rose 
Garden.
    When confirmed, Mr. Mueller will be only the sixth person to hold 
this position. He assumes great responsibilities. He was chosen with 
great care, and he has my full confidence. Bob Mueller earned my trust 
and that of the Attorney General when he served as Acting Deputy 
Attorney General earlier this year. He also has earned the confidence of 
other Presidents before me.
    He is the current U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of 
California. He was appointed to that position by President Clinton. He 
served in my father's administration, as well. Before that, he was U.S. 
Attorney for Massachusetts, making him one of the very few ever to serve 
as Chief Federal Prosecutor in two jurisdictions.
    Our next FBI Director has given nearly all his career to public 
service, going back to his days in the Marine Corps. He served with 
distinction and was decorated during the Vietnam war. As a lawyer, 
prosecutor, and Government official, he has shown high ideals, a clear 
sense of purpose, and a tested devotion to his country.
    As Director, Mr. Mueller will succeed a good and honest man, 
Director Louis Freeh, who has my respect and the gratitude of our 
Nation. I also want to thank Acting Director Pickard, who has served 
well during this transition.
    The FBI has a great tradition that Mr. Mueller must now affirm and 
some important challenges he must confront. Like the Department of 
Justice, the FBI must remain independent of politics and uncompromising 
in its mission.
    Bob Mueller's term in office will last longer than my own. And the 
next 10 years will bring more forms of crime, new threats of terror from 
beyond our borders and within them. The tools of law enforcement will 
change, as well. The FBI must be ready to protect Americans from new 
types of criminals who will use modern technology to defraud and disrupt 
our society.
    The Bureau must secure its rightful place as the premier 
counterespionage and counterterrorist organization in the United States. 
It must continue to serve as a resource and training center for law 
enforcement. And it must do all this with a firm commitment to 
safeguarding the constitutional rights of our citizens.
    Bob Mueller's experience and character convinced me that he's ready 
to shoulder these responsibilities. Agents of the Bureau prize three 
virtues above all: fidelity, bravery, and integrity. This new Director 
is a man who exemplifies them all.
    Congratulations.

[At this point, Director-designate Mueller made brief remarks.]

    The President. Congratulations.
    Mr. Mueller. Thank you very much, sir.
    The President. Thank you all for coming.

[[Page 1013]]

Note: The President spoke at 11:30 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Thomas J. Pickard, Acting 
Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation. The transcript released by 
the Office of the Press Secretary also included the remarks of Director-
designate Mueller.